Toyota Highlander vs Honda Pilot: which is more reliable?
The Toyota Highlander is ahead of the Honda Pilot on the federal record, 65/100 against 61/100 — a real but narrow gap that a bad model year on either side closes.
The record, side by side
Toyota Highlander
- 11 model years scored
- 2,349 owner complaints on record
- about 27 complaints per year on the road
- 39 recall campaigns, 24 safety-critical
- best year 2016 (86/100) · worst 2020 (37/100)
Honda Pilot
- 15 model years scored
- 6,376 owner complaints on record
- about 76 complaints per year on the road
- 97 recall campaigns, 63 safety-critical
- best year 2014 (84/100) · worst 2019 (27/100)
Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.
Year by year: Highlander against Pilot
The comparison that decides the purchase. A nameplate is not one car — a redesign can move the record sixty points inside two years, and the two nameplates rarely move together.
| Year | Highlander | Pilot | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 82 BUY | 34 AVOID | +48 |
| 2024 | — | 68 CAUTION | — |
| 2023 | — | 73 BUY | — |
| 2022 | — | 79 BUY | — |
| 2021 | — | 48 AVOID | — |
| 2020 | 37 AVOID | 51 CAUTION | -14 |
| 2019 | 40 AVOID | 27 AVOID | +13 |
| 2018 | 45 AVOID | 71 BUY | -26 |
| 2017 | 56 CAUTION | 51 CAUTION | +5 |
| 2016 | 86 BUY | 46 AVOID | +40 |
| 2015 | 78 BUY | 81 BUY | -3 |
| 2014 | 79 BUY | 84 BUY | -5 |
| 2013 | 80 BUY | 75 BUY | +5 |
| 2012 | 85 BUY | 75 BUY | +10 |
| 2011 | 84 BUY | 73 BUY | +11 |
What owners actually complain about
Toyota Highlander
- Power Train — 461 complaints
- Unknown Or Other — 363 complaints
- Electrical System — 306 complaints
Honda Pilot
- Engine — 2,060 complaints
- Electrical System — 1,690 complaints
- Unknown Or Other — 996 complaints
They do not fail the same way: the Highlander's complaints concentrate in Power Train, the Pilot's in Engine. That difference matters more to a buyer than the score gap, because it says which repair bill you are taking on.
Years to avoid on each
Toyota Highlander — avoid: 2018, 2019, 2020.
Honda Pilot — avoid: 2016, 2019, 2021, 2025.
A year scores below 45 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. Every car’s years to avoid.
What each costs today
A recent used Toyota Highlander prices at about $40,800 and a Honda Pilot at about $40,800 — they price within $1 of each other, which at this level is the same money, and they return 25.0 against 21.0 MPG combined.
Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.
FAQ
Is the Toyota Highlander or the Honda Pilot more reliable?
On the NHTSA record the Toyota Highlander scores 65/100 against the Honda Pilot's 61/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The gap is small enough that the model year matters more than the badge.
Which Toyota Highlander and Honda Pilot years should I avoid?
Toyota Highlander: 2018, 2019, 2020. Honda Pilot: 2016, 2019, 2021, 2025. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.
What goes wrong on the Toyota Highlander and the Honda Pilot?
The largest complaint group on the Toyota Highlander is Power Train (461 complaints); on the Honda Pilot it is Engine (2,060).
Is the Toyota Highlander or the Honda Pilot cheaper to own?
A recent used Toyota Highlander prices at about $40,800 and a Honda Pilot at about $40,800, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.